Explore History, Culture & Writing
Explore our extraordinary range of History, Culture and Writing courses and lectures. We offer both introductory and specialist in-depth courses to suit all levels of interest and experience, from ‘How to read a film’ and World literature, to Creative non-fiction writing courses and American history and Politics courses.
Our tutors are experts in their fields and experienced educators; many have published, teach in universities or share their expertise in the media. Tutors share their knowledge and passion through presentations, readings, interactive discussion and exercises, analysis, and other activities.
Many students return to take more courses, telling us they enjoy being part of our City Lit Learning community.
Our popular courses often sell out quickly, so we invite you to browse and book your place now.
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- British literature of the 1930s: under the shadow of warCourse start date: Tue 26 Sep 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Lewis WardIn these troubled times, we often hear that we are ‘going back to the 1930s’. But what was it like the first time round? Find out through essential writings by George Orwell, W.H. Auden, Virginia Woolf, Stevie Smith and more.Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £149.00 Concession £97.00 - Nuns, tarts, trouble and strife: medieval women (1)Course start date: Tue 26 Sep 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Vanessa KingWe will look beyond the myth of the meek fair maiden and see what life was really like for women in the middle ages. From the cradle to the grave, rich and poor.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £99.00 Concession £64.00 - Introduction to art history
Course start date: Fri 29 Sep 2023 (and 3 other dates)Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Thomas BalfeAre you interested in art and want to get more out of looking at art and exhibitions? Want to know what an art historian does? Develop your interpretative skills by exploring at how art is made and what social and cultural factors construct our understanding of it.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £183.00 Concession £149.00 - US history for beginnersCourse start date: Tue 3 Oct 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Dafydd TownleyThis online course offers a brief examination of, and introduction to, the political, economic, social and cultural aspects of the United States, 1608 - 2001.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £99.00 Concession £64.00 - The many sides of London's West EndCourse start date: Tue 3 Oct 2023
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Richard WatkinsA course of walking tours of London’s West End showing its development from the seventeenth century, how its profile has ebbed and flowed, looking at it through specific themes.
First meeting place: Covent Garden tube, outside exit on James Street.Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £97.00 - The myth of the American West in 20th and 21st century literatureCourse start date: Tue 3 Oct 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Caroline Millar‘The West is a country in the mind, and so eternal.’ Archibald McLeish
The idea of the American West has captured the imagination of writers for decades, perhaps even centuries. This course offers an opportunity to read, explore and discuss a selection of novelists, short story writers, poets and essayists as they depict and debate the American West through the written word.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £179.00 Senior fee £143.00 Concession £116.00 - America in the 50s: culture and societyCourse start date: Tue 3 Oct 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Pauline Greene, Mark Malcomson, Dale Mineshima-Lowe, Paul Sutton, Patricia Sweeney, Ian TucknottWe will explore the political, social and cultural context of 1950s America through a study of representative and
sometimes surprisingly radical literature, history and film of the period. We will also have an overview of important
themes of the 1950s in art and music. The course has different tutors for each specialism, providing different ways
in to understanding the decade.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00 - Writing for magazines Course start date: Mon 18 Sep 2023 (and 6 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Susan GrossmanGet inspired to write on this practical course for freelance journalists and bloggers. Learn to carry out research, interview people, pitch and publish stories, and build your presence on social media.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £139.00 Concession £70.00 - The art of the Burgundian Netherlands c. 1360-1480 Course start date: Tue 17 Oct 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Julia MusgraveExplore how the extravagant lifestyle of the Burgundian court provided opportunities for an opulent Burgundian style to be developed and disseminated across Europe in the late middle ages and into the renaissance.Full fee £149.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £97.00 - London's smaller art collections Course start date: Tue 31 Oct 2023 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Off Site
Tutors: Julie BarlowDiscover some of London’s fascinating smaller art collections and hidden art treasures on this gallery-based art history course.Full fee £179.00 Senior fee £143.00 Concession £116.00 - Art & warCourse start date: Tue 31 Oct 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Elizabeth EyresArt representing issues of war, conflict and revolution is usually either an expression of triumph or loss. But who decides? What is such art for and what can it hope to achieve? Attitudes to war have changed significantly and this course considers responses to conflict in painting, sculpture, photography, performance art and architecture spanning the globe and across different eras.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £95.00 Concession £77.00 - How to read a film: a beginners' guide to cinema Course start date: Tue 19 Sep 2023 (and 3 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Paul SuttonThis course will develop your critical appreciation of the cinema by teaching you how to read and understand film texts. We will look at the elements that underpin film form – narrative, mise en scène, cinematography, editing and sound – alongside its historical development. We will consider film style by exploring classical, post-classical and art cinema and we will examine influential critical modes of analysis, such as genre, authorship and spectatorship.Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00 - European architecture in the Middle Ages 800-1500
Course start date: Tue 7 Nov 2023Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Richard PlantExplore the development of architecture in Europe from the Carolingian period to the end of the middle ages and study the major monuments – cathedrals, parish churches and castles of the age. - Ancient Greek dramaCourse start date: Tue 7 Nov 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Maria ContosHave a taste of exploring the ancient Athenian stage, and how they still speak to us about the challenges we face today.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £99.00 Senior fee £79.00 Concession £64.00 - Jews in London from the 1650s to the 1950s: a closer lookCourse start date: Tue 9 Jan 2024
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: David RosenbergThis course will provide an exploration of 300 years of Jewish life, culture and history in London from the small scale resettlement in the 1650s through to the 1950s when the borough of Hackney was home to London’s largest and most diverse Jewish community.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £183.00 Concession £149.00
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